JOHNs, David and Y'all: Just a few words...
The stories and reports of the mystical or "peak" experiences of others are
no substitute for the real thing, of course, but I think you'll have to
admit that such reports constitute something like empirical evidence. Many
of the things we know about, we know only through books, eh? With with
respect to mysticism, it seems John will doubt the atlas until he's seen the
whole world with his own eyes? I respect healthy skepticism as much as the
next guy, but we do have something like factual material to work with in
this case. I mean, it doesn't take a mystic to investigate the nature of
Mysticism. For all the warnings about the inadeqacey of words and seconds
hand news, there is a surprizing amount of literature on the topic, no? Its
really not a matter of faith or belief, much more psychological and
spiritual than religious or theological. Let us be clear on that.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: David Lind [SMTP:Trickster@postmark.net]
> Sent: Tuesday, February 15, 2000 10:59 PM
> To: moq_discuss@moq.org
> Subject: Re: MD Regressive mystics
>
> Another Zen saying talks of all the written material on Zen being like
> a finger pointing at the moon. The books, etc are the finger...Zen is
> the moon. The finger guides us, but if we look only at the finger, we
> miss the moon.
>
> Shalom
>
> David Lind
> Trickster@postmark.net
>
> Richard Chamberlain wrote:
>
> >
> > A lot to unpack there and all very interesting. I'd just like to add two
> points:
> >
> > 1) You don't get to enlightenment by studying it and I believe,
> sometimes
> desperatly, that it is
> > something that science will never be able to get a grasp on. I seem to
> remember that, in Zen terms,
> > enlightenment comes with the loss of sense of self - maybe 'oceanic
> conciousness'. A couple of good
> > books (I think) : 'Essays in Zen Buddhism: Vol 1' by D T Suzuki (I think
> this is out of print nowadays
> > but well worth finding a copy of), 'Franny and Zooey' by J D Salinger.
> >
> > 2) Other people's enlightenment is rarely of any use to oneself.
> >
> > If that's of ANY help at all,
> >
> > richard chamberlain
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
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>
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